Thoughts on Ford Ranger?

[TurboJake]

There was on ranger that my buddy had. This friend was able to kill a tempo in 5 minutes (He was trying)
He bought it with 200k for 500 bucks. '92 4 cylinder 5 speed. Had the twinsparkplug motor. He tried to kill it for a LONG time.
fast forward 5 years
440k miles on it.
Nothing ever went wrong. He just replaced parts because he felt bad for the damn thing.

He hated it with a flaming passion. We all did. It was a useless truck except for lugging around a motor in the bed.

But it always started, even on those -30 degree winter nights.

The trucks name was Bill, because the first thing he thought of when he saw and drove it was of bill the cat.

Anything newer than 97 though. Just shoot yourself now and save yourself the headache

[Vince30]

Jims 05




Erics 00


As it sits now, 230k miles on the original 3.0, f-250 axels, 13" of lift, 37" military tires.

[Mercury[BKM]]

you don't really want a newer one since they're basically the same vehicle with more plastic. unless you're into spending more money than something is worth.

they get the about same mileage as far as fuel goes as the same year F-150s too (same insurance rate too)

[u3b3rg33k]

If you do buy one, get one with the 4.0 pushrod V6. One of the few things ford has nailed is the pushrod engine, their OHC engines are much more prone to issues.

If you happen to find one with the pushrod v6 and a manual transmission, you're set. If you get one with the offroad package, it might even have a factory limited slip rear end. IIRC it's skid plates, bigger rims, and a T2-R diff.

[Pudmunkie]

My family has a 96 with the 4 liter v6. I like the truck, but it's used mostly on the weekends to bomb around in while smoking cigars.

A buddy has a 5 liter swapped 96 thats super fun as well.

[jose325i]

My father has a 2000 ranger extended cab v6 (I think it is a 3.0). He bought it with 25k miles, now it has 130k. Extremely reliable, only parts that he had to replace were suspension refresh at around 90k, and a leaky radiator hose at 125k. Never towed anything, but it was fine when he bought new washer and dryer

[urbancynic]

My brother has an 03 Ranger that just turned 100k. It has the 3.0l V6.

Damn thing is too small, underpowered, worthless offroad, chews gas (seriously, he's lucky to do 15 on the highway), and is always giving him issues of some sort or another. Also, resale value keeps plummeting.

He likes it, but I hate it. He has said he wished he'd bought a Tacoma instead though.

As a truck it is pretty much worthless. Towing capacity is really low, power is really low, and the bed size isn't the greatest.

[xwill112x]

s10s aren't as nice as rangers but with the 4.3 in the square body style, they line lock 2nd and peek 3rd stock lol. the ranger is a better truck for comfort and usability than the s10 imo.

[JeffRR]

Why bother with anything else in the small truck segment, Toyota Tacoma's / pick-ups (pre-tacoma) are the reliability benchmarks. Just look for a southern rust free example, if you can keep them from returning to the earth (rust) you'll be in good shape.

[Dermeister3]

ugh.... such mixed thoughts. I want at least the MPG my E30 gets. like 20-23.

Do the newer ones do a bit better on gas? and Im definitely looking for a 6cyl manual. seems like the 4cyl cant do anything well, like the redheaded step child....

[NKRoberts]

ugh.... such mixed thoughts. I want at least the MPG my E30 gets. like 20-23.

Do the newer ones do a bit better on gas? and Im definitely looking for a 6cyl manual. seems like the 4cyl cant do anything well, like the redheaded step child....

Mine was a 4cyl and I had no problem with it. I easily the gas mileage that you are looking to get and i bet it had more get up and go then a lot of e30s on this forum.

[Sagaris]

Hey, you be nice to the M10's now , ya hear?

[Mercury[BKM]]

you don't want a newer 6 cyl ford ranger, unless u like bad gas, no power, no towing, no hauling room, lots of maint and all the stuff that has been said.

older ones are better, or get a taco like was just mentioned, those are atleast decent

[MR 325]

From a mechanic's point of view, I would NEVER own a Ranger.

Do yourself a favor and buy a Toyota pickup.

[ficklerx]

I want at least the MPG my E30 gets. like 20-23.

Like I said in my earlier post. I got 18-20 around town and up to 23 on the hwy with a 4x4 extended cab, 4.0 L, and 5 speed. It also had a 3.73 rear and 31" tires. The 4.0 L was only rated for 160 hp then, but that was plenty since I previously had the 2.3 L go-go powerless ranger. It wasn't a race car but could tow my Kubota on an 18 ft trailer without any problems. Occasionally towed heavier but not over significant distances (10-20 miles).

If I had not needed a bigger truck for passengers, I would probably still have it.